Ostomy Coupling

ABSTRACT

An ostomy coupling includes two rings which can be interengaged concentrically. The inner ring (1a) has a peripheral flange (2) at one end for attachment to an abdominal pad (3a) and a radially outwardly directed peripheral bead (6) at its other end; while the outer ring (1b) has a radially outwardly directed flange (7) for attachment to an ostomy pouch (8a), and a lip (11) which engages behind the peripheral bead (6) on the inner ring in order to secure the two rings of the coupling together. The flange (7) on the outer coupling ring includes a stiffening member (10) which is disposed so as to restrain the outer coupling ring from expanding away from the inner coupling ring when the two parts of the coupling are interengaged in use.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to International Application NumberPCT/GB95/0135, filed Jun. 9, 1995.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an ostomy coupling for connecting an ostomypouch to a pad which is adhesively attached to the abdominal skin of auser such that it surrounds the stoma.

BACKGROUND OF THE RELATED ART

Ostomy couplings generally include two rings which can be interengagedconcentrically, the inner ring having means at one end for attachment toan abdominal pad and a radially outwardly directed peripheral bead atits other end, whilst the outer ring has a radially outwardly directedflange for attachment to an ostomy pouch and is adapted to fit over theinner ring with a lip on the outer ring engaged behind the peripheralbead on the inner ring in order to secure the two components of thecoupling together. An ostomy coupling of this type is disclosed, forexample, in GB 1217406.

Whilst such couplings are satisfactory in many respects, there is atendency for the outer coupling ring attached to the pouch to expandaway from the inner body-side coupling during use, as pressure builds upwithin the pouch causing the pouch to spread out. This in turn may causeleakage of gas from the pouch which is obviously undesirable andunpleasant for the user.

WO-A-8503427 discloses a coupling of the aforementioned kind providedwith a belt attaching ring mounted on the outer coupling ring, the beltattaching ring receiving the ends of a belt fitted around the waist of auser to assist in retaining the ostomy pouch in position. The beltattaching ring may also slide axially to a position in which it assistsin clamping the lip in its engaged position behind the peripheral beadon the inner coupling ring. However, such an arrangement is onlyeffective when used with a waist belt attached to the belt ring.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to alleviate the problem ofleakage of gas from the pouch which does not depend on the provision ofa belt attaching ring and waist belt.

According to the invention, the flange on the outer coupling ringincludes a stiffening member made of a material stiffer than thatforming the outer coupling ring and disposed in a recess formed in theoutwardly directed flange of the outer ring, said recess being open atthe opposite surface to the surface attached to the pouch whereby saidstiffening member acts to restrain the outer coupling ring fromexpanding away from the inner coupling ring when the two parts of thecoupling ring are engaged in use.

In one embodiment, the flange is of channel cross-section with thestiffening member located in the channel. The stiffening member may besecured in position by any suitable means of an adhesive, by heatsealing or making it a snap fit in the recess or channel.

The radially outer surface of the inner ring and the radially innersurface of the lip on the outer ring may be tapered in a complementaryfashion such as to assist the outer ring being fitted over the innerring. The lip on the outer ring may be wedge-shaped in cross section,with the narrower end of the wedge attached to the flange by a web orneck portion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a cross-section through part of an inner coupling ringaccording to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a cross-section through part of an outer coupling ringintended to engage with the inner ring shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of an ostomy pouch having the outer coupling ringshown in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of an abdominal pad having the inner coupling ringshown in FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF BEST MODES OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, the inner ring 1a of an ostomy coupling hasan outwardly directed peripheral flange 2 at one end, with an attachmentsurface 3 for attaching the inner ring about the aperture in anabdominal pad 3a of a type known in the art. The ring has a cylindricalradially inner surface 4 and a frusto-conical or tapered radially outersurface 5. At the opposite end of the ring from the flange 2 is aperipheral bead 6 having a generally semicircular cross-section.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show the outer coupling ring 1b which forms the otherelement of the coupling. The ring comprises a flange 7 which has anattachment surface 8 for attaching about the aperture in an ostomy pouch8a of a type known in the art. The flange 7 is of generally channelcross-section to provide a rectangular recess 9 within which is securedan annular stiffening member 10 of corresponding rectangularcross-section.

Attached to the radially inner side of the flange 7 is a lip 11 of wedgeshaped cross-section, extending from an angled neck 12 on said radiallyinner side of the flange 7. The lip 11 has a frusto-conical or taperedsurface 13 on its radially inner side, the slope of which conforms tothat of the conical surface 5 of the inner ring 1a.

To assemble the coupling, the outer ring 1b is placed over the innerring 1a and pushed towards the latter until the lip 11 is deflected asit passes over the peripheral bead 6 and then latches behind the bead,the conical surfaces 5, 13 coming into contact to seal the coupling.

The outer ring is preferably made of ethylene vinyl acetate, thestiffening member 10 of nylon 66 or rigid polyvinyl chloride and theinner ring of low density polyethylene. In another example, the outerring is made of 15% ethylene vinyl acetate and, 85% low densitypolyethylene. However, those skilled in the art may select alternativesuitable materials, as long as the stiffening member is made of amaterial more rigid than that of the outer ring 1b.

When the coupling is assembled, the stiffening member 10 liessubstantially adjacent and parallel to the flange 2 of the inner ring.The relative rigidity of the stiffening member serves to restrain theouter ring from expanding away from the inner ring even if the ostomypouch inflates and expands. Thus, any tendency for leakage is greatlyreduced.

One or more pull tabs 14, shown in FIG. 3, may be provided on the outerring 7 as is known in the art to facilitate its removal from the innerring 1.

The invention, as exemplified by the described embodiment, thus providesan ostomy coupling which is easily assembled and disassembled yet is notprone to leaks. The coupling is also of low profile, easy to coupletogether and largely self-aligning due to its tapered configurationwhich is of particular advantage to the poorly sighted. Moreover thesmooth inner surface 4 of the inner ring makes it easy to keep clean.

If desired, the stiffening member 10 may be made in various grades ofstiffness, thus providing a different degree of security depending onthe stiffness chosen. Such stiffening members could be colour coded orotherwise identified according to the degree of stiffness which theyimpart.

Such a facility enables the degree of security to be related to theactivity of the wearer. For example, a large sedentary user may becontent with a coupling incorporating a lower degree of stiffness andhence greater ease of uncoupling, whereas a more active user may requirea greater degree of security and hence use a coupling incorporating ahigher degree of stiffness but which requires greater force to separatethe two coupling members.

I claim:
 1. An ostomy coupling comprising two rings which can beinterengaged concentrically, the inner ring (1a) having a flange (2) atone end for attachment to an abdominal pad and a radially outwardlydirected peripheral bead (6) at its other end, and the outer ring (1b)having a radially outwardly directed flange (7) for attachment to anostomy pouch and a lip (11) which engages behind the peripheral bead (6)on the inner ring in order to secure the two rings of the couplingtogether, characterised in that the flange on the outer coupling ring(1b) includes a stiffening member (10) made of a material stiffer thanthat forming the outer coupling ring and disposed in a recess (9) formedin said flange of said outer ring (1b), said recess being open at theopposite surface to the surface attached to the pouch, whereby saidstiffening member acts to restrain the outer coupling ring fromexpanding away from the inner coupling ring when the two parts of thecoupling are interengaged in use.
 2. An ostomy coupling as claimed inclaim 1, characterised in that said flange (7) is of channel sectionwith the stiffening member (10) located in the channel.
 3. An ostomycoupling as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the stiffeningmember (10) is secured in position by means of an adhesive or heatsealing.
 4. An ostomy coupling as claimed in claim 1, characterised inthat the stiffening member (10) is a snap fit in the recess or channel(9).
 5. An ostomy coupling as claimed in claim 1, characterised in thatthe radially outer surface (5) of the inner ring (1a) and the radiallyinner surface (13) of the lip on the outer ring (1b) are tapered in acomplementary fashion.
 6. An ostomy coupling as claimed in claim 1,characterised in that the lip (11) on said outer ring (1b) iswedge-shaped in cross-section, with the narrower end of the wedgeattached to the flange (7) by a neck or web portion (12).
 7. An ostomycoupling as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the stiffeningmember (10) is made in various grades of stiffness each of which bearsan identification to indicate the degree of stiffness which it imparts,thereby enabling a choice of stiffening member to be fitted to the outercoupling ring (1b).
 8. An ostomy coupling as claimed in claim 1,characterised in that the outer ring (1b) is made at least partially ofethylene vinyl acetate, the stiffening member is made of nylon or rigidPVC and the inner ring is made of low density polyethylene.